City of Powell River director of planning services Thomas Knight has provided council with an update and clarification on land-use amendments for construction of the Sino Bright School campus in Townsite.
In a followup to a December presentation, Knight told the committee of the whole on Tuesday, January 19, that he had confirmed with proponents of the land deal the 30-acre parcel would be rezoned from large lot rural to institutions.
In Sino Bright Investment Limited's original submission, the proponents had requested a rezoning from rural to general commercial, but city staff were not in support.
"The original advice to pursue the commercial zoning was really based on the proponent wanting to pay their fair share of taxes, and it was a private sector business," said Scott Randolph, city manager of economic development. "Of course, the province's Bill 29 changed that."
Bill 29, legislation given royal assent in November 2015, serves up private K-12 educational institutions with statutory property tax exemptions, though they are still required to contribute for city services.
"After looking at it, we decided to pursue the institutional zone," said Randolph. He added Sino Bright is planning on rolling out its public consultation soon.
Knight told the committee staff prefers the institutions zoning. "It is more in keeping with the intent to develop a private school campus," he said.
A subject to Sino Bright School's land purchase from PRSC Limited Partnership, between City of Powell River and Tla'amin Nation-owned business Tees'Kwat Land Holdings, is that the 30-acre parcel be excluded from the province's agricultural land reserve (ALR).
Knight is recommending council support his recommendation to bring the zoning and sustainable official community plan amendment bylaws through first and second reading. Bylaws at that stage can sit and wait for the proponents to complete public consultation work for excluding the parcel from the ALR.
Knight recommended that once public consultation is complete, "council will then be in a position to consider a resolution pertaining to the ALR exclusion request," he said.
The Sino Bright school's construction is expected to bring an increase in construction-related jobs and, once operational, is expected to create 107 permanent positions.
